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Is sugar “toxic” in any amount—even in natural sweeteners? Are artificial sweeteners safe? What about stevia and xylitol? Cut through the confusion and hype and find out which sweeteners are safe for you and your family.

Are common additives to food and supplements like soy lecithin, carrageenan, xanthum gum, and magnesium stearate harmful–or harmless? Read this eBook to find out which ingredients you should be concerned about, and which are safe.

An estimated 20 million Americans have thyroid disorders, but more than half don’t know it. Find out why thyroid problems are so often mis-diagnosed, what really causes them, and how to heal them naturally.

Research suggests that healing your gut may be the single most important thing you can do to improve your health. In this eBook, you’ll learn how to optimize your gut health—and by extension, your overall health—with simple diet and lifestyle changes.

What do memory loss, depression, anxiety, fatigue, nerve pain, and infertility have in common? They can all be caused by B12 deficiency. Find out why B12 deficiency is more common than most doctors think, how to know if you’re deficient, and what to do about it.

Does eating cholesterol and saturated fat really cause heart disease? Are statin drugs as effective as we’re told? Find out what the latest research says in this eBook, and learn how to prevent and treat heart disease naturally.

The Paleo diet has the potential to dramatically improve your health—but the transition doesn’t always go smoothly. In this eBook, you’ll learn the three biggest obstacles to Paleo success, and how to overcome them.

The truth about statin drugs

Statins have been almost universally hailed as “wonder drugs” by medical authorities around the world. The market for statins was $26 billion in 2005, and sales for Lipitor alone reached $14 billion in 2006. Merck and Bristol Myers-Squib are actively seeking “over-the-counter” (OTC) status for their statin drugs. Statins are prescribed to men and women, children and the elderly, people with heart disease and people without heart disease.

In fact, these drugs have a reputation for being so safe and effective that one UK physician, John Reckless (I’m not kidding – that’s actually his name!) has suggested that we put statins in the water supply.

That’s a bold suggestion, of course, and it begs the question: are statins really as safe and cost effective as mainstream medical authorities claim? The unequivocal answer is no.

Statins don’t increase survival in healthy people

Statins have never been shown to be effective in reducing the risk of death in people with no history of heart disease. No study of statins on this “primary prevention population” has ever shown reduced mortality in healthy men and women with only an elevated serum cholesterol level and no known coronary heart disease. (CMAJ. 2005 Nov 8;173(10):1207; author reply 1210.) Statins do reduce the risk of heart attacks in this population, but the reduction is relatively modest:

Statins don’t increase survival in women

Despite the fact that around half of the millions of statin prescriptions written each year are handed to female patients, these drugs show no overall mortality benefit regardless of whether they are used for primary prevention (women with no history of heart disease) or secondary prevention (women with pre-existing heart disease). In women without coronary heart disease (CHD), statins fail to lower both CHD and overall mortality, while in women with CHD, statins do lower CHD mortality but increase the risk of death from other causes, leaving overall mortality unchanged. (JAMA study)

Statins don’t increase survival in the elderly

The only statin study dealing exclusively with seniors, the PROSPER trial, found that pravastatin did reduce the incidence of coronary mortality (death from heart disease). However, this decrease was almost entirely negated by a corresponding increase in cancer deaths. As a result, overall mortality between the pravastatin and placebo groups after 3.2 years was nearly identical.

This is a highly significant finding since the rate of heart disease in 65-year old men is ten times higher than it is in 45-year old men. The vast majority of people who die from heart disease are over 65, and there is no evidence that statins are effective in this population.

Do statins work for anyone?

Among people with CHD or considered to be at high risk for CHD, the effect of statins on the incidence of CHD mortality ranges from virtually none (in the ALLHAT trial) to forty-six percent (the LIPS trial). The reduction in total mortality from all causes ranges from none (the ALLHAT trial) to twenty-nine percent (the 4S trial).

However, the use of statins in this population is not without considerable risk. Statins frequently produce muscle weakness, lethargy, liver dysfunction and cognitive disturbances ranging from confusion to transient amnesia. They have produced severe rhabdomyolysis that can lead to life-threatening kidney failure.

Aspirin just as effective as statins (and 20x cheaper!)

Perhaps the final nail in the coffin for statins is that a recent study in the British Medical Journal showed that aspirin is just as effective as statins for treating heart disease in secondary prevention populations – and 20 times more cost effective! Aspirin is also far safer than statins are, with fewer adverse effects, risks and complications.

The bottom line

Statin drugs do not reduce the risk of death in 95% of the population, including healthy men with no pre-existing heart disease, women of any age, and the elderly.

Statin drugs do reduce mortality for young and middle-aged men with pre-existing heart disease, but the benefit is small and not without significant adverse effects, risks and costs.

Aspirin works just as well as statins do for preventing heart disease, and is 20 times more cost effective.

So what if you are at risk for heart disease and you’d prefer not to take a statin? Other than aspirin, there are many clinically proven ways to prevent heart disease involving simple adjustments to diet and lifestyle. In fact, the recent INTERHEART study which looked at the incidence of heart disease in 52 countries revealed that over 90% of heart disease is preventable by diet and lifestyle modifications.

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I have familial hypercholesterolemia and wish I knew the answer. I took Lipitor w/ Zetia for several years and discovered I had a borderline A1C (5.7) even after eating fairly low carb WAPF type diet. I stopped the Lipitor after I heard about the research connecting it to insulin resistance, but my cholesterol became so high, I reluctantly started 10 mg of Prevastatin again.

My story about Statins, 5 years ago my GP announced that my health assessment put my risk of having a heart attack or stroke within 10 years at 15%. He suggested that i should start taking statins and prescribed Crestor, Crestor caused me to immediately develop flu like symptoms, after one week i stopped taking them, next my GP prescribed ,Lipitor, a week later i stopped taking them, (same reason), i was then prescribed niacin, slow release niacin, and then Zocor, which i took with no real issues for two years until he increased my dosage and developing diabetes, my GP made my diabetes diagnosis at a scheduled appointment , i was told by him that i now had a 30% chance of having a heart attack or stroke, after doing research of my own i discovered that statins would increase my chances of developing diabetes by 9%.
I’m no longer taking statins even after my GP insisted he would prescribe another lower dose statin to see if i could tolerate it.
How can this be fair? So much for improving my overall health.

Hmm, seems to me that I read somewhere that for women, taking a statin increases their risk of developing diabeties by 50%! unbelievable–I wish I could remember where I saw that. Anyway, I do not ever imagine taking a statin ever again. After extensive reading, I’ve come to believe that statins are not what is needed–more so, I question the entire belief that cholesterol is the problem. It’s a long road to figure all this out, and unfortunately I think we all have to do this now–each of, has to study and research on our own. It makes me sad to have lost some faith in the medical community. I’ll always be grateful to have a doctor around when I break an arm, or need my apendix out, but for heart health I will look elsewhere for advise.

My wife who has a family history of heart disease, a few years ago developed chest pain, the local cardiac specialist immediately prescribed a high dosage of Crestor, my wife developed severe depression, tiredness, weakness, loss of appetite. An angioplasty was performed at a specialized heart hospital out of town, that cardiologist announced that my wife’s arteries were ” in pristine condition, just like the day she was born”, he suggested that the chest pain was due to , “exercised induced asthma” , which after further study is exactly what it turned out to be, she threw the Crestor out were it belongs , in the garbage , and now uses a puffer from time to time, so much for her health assessment that suggests she should be using statins, last week her GP told her that her risk of having a heart attack this year is 30%, what’s going on here?

The problem is that most doctors are still basing their diagnosis on hypotheses which were unproven at the time and which have since been disproven, but that they were taught as fact. They base their risk assessment on total serum cholesterol(which is a nearly meaningless number) and don’t bother to take anything else into account.

Great to hear from you again James. Last time I talked with my doc (oh, about three months ago?), she was “ok” with my not taking a statin, thought she still thought I should take one and that it would reduce my risk of heart diseasy by 30% (I didn’t even “get into it” with her about the difference between relative risk and absolute risk). But I think they have it fundamentally wrong–what “causes” heart disease.

@James “99% of all cholesterol in your body is manufactured by your body, then your body has to be manufacturing it for a reason.”

Certainly that’s worth considering, but as we know the body sometimes does things that are unhealthy for various reasons including “disjoints” stemming from body processes that developed when human needs were very different. E.g., when humans were all active foragers who might have to go long periods without eating, energy storage as fat served a useful purpose. But today, with more-abundant food and a sedentary lifestyle, such storage can be detrimental. While cholesterol remains essential for life, maybe the body now produces more of it than we need.

Well, I guess the questions is, fundamentally, is cholesterol in any way harmful to the body??? Plaque, which can be stable (benign), or unstable (potentially harmful), is composed of numerous substances besides just cholesterol. Why are those other substances not questioned as being harmful? It’s very interesting…last week I had an ultrasound of my carotid arteries and there is zero plaque. The doc said my carotid arteries are “squeaky clean.” I just had my cholesterol checked last month and my TC is 307, I believe LDL was like 222. My LDL-P (particle number) was ~2400! Very high! I’ve been eating healthy Paleo for about a year now. High in healthy fats (grass-fed meat and eggs), veggies, no grains, but dairy (which is not strict Paleo). I am amazed that I (at age 59) zero plaque. Apparently the carotid arteries is the first place plaque will typically develop. So, for me anyway, even with a TC number of over 300, I wonder why I would even be concerned with my cholesterol level, let alone take a statin. I’ve stated already that I think the “real” issue is systemic inflammation. I will continue to read and study.

My question is that I have very good numbers, but because my dad had openheart surgery 3 years ago, my grandfather had heart attack at 64 and died, other grandfather had a pace maker at 80, and died at 84. dr wants me on statin Lipitor, I eat right and exercise and everything else ok, do you think I still need to be on meds?

I went on statins when I was ~52 due to elevated cholesterol (~250). A yr. ago I started an intensive study of heart disease, particularly as it relates to cholesterol. I decided to go off my statin, having taking it for six years. My doctor believes it is my choice if I want to take the risk. But my gripe is that she continues to tell me I would enjoy a 30% reduced risk if I took a statin. I want to scream! I’d really like her to read some other literature. She’s a board-certified internist and she continues to try to “sell” me on taking statins. I even brought up the question of cholesterol maybe not really being the “bad guy” that it’s been made out to be—it was if she simply didn’t hear me. I have no other risk factors for CVD, other than high cholesterol, so I would be very disinclined to go back on it. Why can’t the entire medical community figure this one out and come to a consensus on cholesterol!?! Why do there continue to be such vastly opposing opinions on the subject? It’s just driving me crazy!

Ha-ha! Yeah. Well, as I have read over the past year, I have heard both sides of the fence point fingers at the other and accuse them of “cherry-picking” the data. I tell ‘ya, at one point I was pretty darn close to pulling out all of my hair–it was driving me that crazy. I’m used to finding and analyzing the facts, at which point I usually find what I believe to be the most obvious/apparent best answer. But with all of this, well, sometimes I just throw up my hands and walk away. All-in-all, I’m leaning towards cholesterol not being something to fear, but that there are other cause(s) of CVD, like inflammation from oxidized industrial seed oils, so prevalent in our western diet, and other various inflammatory substances. So I’m more inclined to think that it’s inflammation than cholesterol.

That is a great attitude to take towards decision making, and something most people have neither the inclination nor the interest in doing relating to medical matters, so I applaud you.

You are right about the contradictory data, but you can approach it from another direction. since 99% of all cholesterol in your body is manufactured by your body, then your body has to be manufacturing it for a reason… So start by looking at your bodies processes and ask the question “why does my body make cholesterol and what does it use it for?”

@James “99% of all cholesterol in your body is manufactured by your body, then your body has to be manufacturing it for a reason.”

Certainly that’s worth considering, but as we know the body sometimes does things that are unhealthy for various reasons including “disjoints” stemming from body processes that developed when human needs were very different. E.g., when humans were all active foragers who might have to go long periods without eating, energy storage as fat served a useful purpose. But today, with more-abundant food and a sedentary lifestyle, such storage can be detrimental. While cholesterol remains essential for life, maybe the body now produces more of it than we need.

I was 50 or 51 when my family doctor presribed a statin drug (niaspan I think) Up until I went to him I took no medications. He put me on lisinopril for elevated blood pressure. 6 months after taking the statin I was diabetic. No family history by the way). The Dr. said I was high risk for a heart attack (high blood pressure). I took Atovorstatin for less than 3 years. My LDL was never over 163. I stoppped taking the statin when my LDL hit 36. This was the same time that I went into the hospital for my 2nd pacemaker in less than a year. I had no signs of heart disease until after taking statin drugs. When I got out of the hospital in May I found a company called SPECTRACELL Labs. I had a full Nutrient Panel conducted (at my own expense). I was deficient in Coenzyme-Q10, Glutamin, Glutathione, Serine. I discovered that the statins remove these nutients from your cells which leads to diabetes, cardiovascular and hart disease. I have been taking supplements based on the recommendations of a local Nutritionist. Unfortunately my heart is damaged beyond repair. I can only try to extend my life a few more years. Statins are POISON. Ever wonder why diabetes and heart disease are epidemic with so many adults taking statin drugs. Good for the grug comapnies amd AMA but gad for the peopel. Whether you take a statin or not it might worth having a complete nutrient panel conducted. Maybe you can prevent these diseases if you are at risk.

At around 39/40 years of age I was prescribed statins off the back of one high cholesterol test, and family history of CVD.
I did as I was told and took my Lipitor, and was asked by my doctor if I would change to a cheaper statin thus saving the NHS money I agreed.
About this time I became very tired and ached a lot so much so I told my GP he sent me to a neurologist who examined my on several occasions even sending me to the ward overnight to have a muscle biopsy taken from my thigh.
He mentioned problems with mitochondria, but could not give me a full diagnosis or prognosis.
I also became forgetful, confused and depressed. I Revisited my GP and was sent for cognitive behavior therapy and put on diazepam.
I developed chronic acid indigestion.
Through all this no mention of statin side effects, ever.
Finally I stopped taking the statins as I got so depressed I thought..’whats the use’.
These side effects added to stresses within my marriage and after a 22yr marriage my wife left me.
There is nothing that can compensate for all that, but I would like help with on going symptoms, namely pins and needless and numbness in fingers, hands forearms and feet, getting worse with age (now 47) continued bouts of depression/ suicidal thoughts and cognitive problems like paranoia.
To that end I would love to take pziser to court any suggestions most welcome.
I only recently realized my problems all stemmed from statins so my three year product liability clock has, to my mind, just started.

My personal experience and research tells me that anything that mess up with cholesterol will give you cognitive issues, joint pain, sleep issues, low testosterone, low adrenal function, severe depression, poor eyesight, impotence, shrunken testicles, cold penis etc. If you visit forums for people suffering from side effects after ingesting
1- Accutane
2- Finasteride
3-Saw palmetto
4-all cholesterol lowering medicines
you will quickly see these all people are having the side effects I just mention above. The reason is these all mess up your cholesterol metabolism.

Just a question. I am 70F, exercise pretty strenuously, almost a vegan (about 100grams of fish almost daily: I live by the sea), good metrics: weight, blood (triglycerides, etc.). But, what is the best indicator of good heart health?

While i hear all the negative about the use of statins, and i can attest to that as i have been on them for a while, unfortunately i have yet to see alternatives that are proven to work. It is fine to say exercise/diet etc does good, which it does to a certain extent, but there has been no studies to prove that these alone will be effective, i have tried exercise and diet, but it made little if any difference, i was told that it had to do with genetics, so my numbers will always be high unless i take a statin. if the alternative world was able to make their point by studies and numbers, the statin use would decline almost immediately, Nobody wishes to take a statin but are caught in a struggle, this is after yr health and life……and there is just no known alternative that is proving to be a better substitute for statins.

I, too, feel somewhat caught in the whole “get your cholesterol numbers down” thinking. After decades of having that beat into our heads, it’s hard to buck that. But, what I am also reading are some really very good arguments that cholesterol, itself, is not the issue–not the “bad” guy. I read something just the other day that 70% of the people who have heart attacks are taking statins–I will have to research that one because if that’s true, that’s saying a WHOLE lot. In any case, I just keep hearing myself asking this one question over and over: is high cholesterol a bad thing??

Well, that is not as straightforward a question as it may seem… The first thing you have to understand is that what most people think of when they refer to cholesterol isn’t cholesterol. There is no such thing as good cholesterol, bad cholesterol, or other… There is just cholesterol. The good/bad/etc are the lipoproteins that carry the cholesterol.

Almost all of the cholesterol in your body is manufactured by your body… and your body uses it for many things, including repairing damage, building the myelin sheaths in your brain, etc. There is a reason your body makes the stuff.

Again, I am simplifying(oversimplifying) all of this, but basically there are 2 types(well, more like 5… but who is really counting?) of lipoproteins. HDL and LDL. LDL takes cholesterol and carries it around the body and deposits it where there is arterial damage so the cholesterol can be used to repair it… And HDL reclaims the cholesterol after it is repaired and takes it out of the system. As long as the source of the damage is not dealt with your body will keep sending out more and more cholesterol. That is also why they find cholesterol at the damage sites.

The statin industry, and indeed the entire cholesterol industry, are busy blaming the symptom rather than dealing with the cause…

I understand everything you’re saying. And I believe I’ve read most of this along the way. But, for some reason, I continue to feel somewhat confounded by it all. Not confounded by the actual information, but by the plethora of conflicting opinions. Also….I’m curious what your thoughts might be as to what “the cause” might be?
Well, I just happened to be at my doc’s yesterday for an annual check-up/cholesterol check. I stopped my statin a year ago. I had an NMR a month ago: TC 307; LDL 218; HDL 58; LDL-P was 2,467! (s/b under 1000-1400?? I’ve heard this range). Even naturopath practitioners who understand the lipid hypothesis to be a fallacy, are saying what really matters is the LDL-P particle number, of which mine is high. But then I read where others say the entirety of the lipid hypothesis is a hoax and don’t pay attention to ANY of your cholesterol numbers. My inflammation markers (homocysteine; C-RP) are low. Triglycerides are higher than I’d like: 157. My fasting insulin level is 6.62uIU/ml, not bad. But that my cholesterol is high, that the particle number is SO high temps me to be concerned.
I am pretty well convinced that cholesterol, contrary to being a “villain,” is actually a vital and necessary component of good health. But then I do wonder if higher C numbers is indicative of something else that is not right. So you can kind of see how my thinking goes and how I end up feeling like I’m chasing my tail. And, as far as I know, heart disease does not even run in my family, cancer does! That’s the funny thing! But!! Every time I go to the doc now, she wants me to go on statins. I otherwise like her, and think of her as competent, and if I have pneumonia or a broken arm, I want her there to help me. But yesterday she threw out the 30% risk reduction by taking a statin…it’s really hard to even talk with her about it because the entirety of her thinking is SO conventional and mainstream and utterly unaware of the other points of view about cholesterol. And since I’d been on a statin for ~6 yrs., with no apparent side effects, she thinks there’s no reason I should not go back on them. I even said to her “ah, well, just because I wasn’t having side effects from the statins doesn’t mean there might not be a long term negative impact on my health, or that they aren’t otherwise damaging me.” She didn’t say anything. But I hate that there will now always be this point of contention between us. Don’t get me wrong, she is totally leaving it up to me if I take the statins or not (which I’m thankful for!!), but she thinks I’m making a mistake.
Ok, I’ve totally talked your ear off. By-the-way, I’m wondering if you’re the James I might know from elsewhere here on the web…his last name would be H*******N. Might that be you? In any case, thank you for taking the time to read my rants and responding! Best regards.

Part of the problem that we have(if not most of the problem that we have) is dietary. We’ve been told that industrial seed oils are good for us and animal fats and other good fats are bad for us.

We’ve been told to cut our dietary sources of cholesterol when dietary cholesterol doesn’t affect serum cholesterol but is necessary for manufacturing hormones…

We consume way too much sugar/grain/starch which causes problems with insulin, liver function, etc…

We consume soy (and other things, although imo soy is the biggest one) which screw with our hormones…

My opinion is that the first intervention we should be doing for people with problems is dietary. Cut the sugar, cut the grains, cut the start, cut the soy. Introduce good fats, good vegetables, good meats…

I agree. I think my tack is going to be leaning towards Paleo/Primal eating….no sugar, grains, I never at a lot of soy. Buying grass-fed meats/eggs/butter. Although I’m not a couch potato, I need to be a little more active. Oh, and a couple of VERY interesting supps I’ve read about lately are nattokinase and serrapeptase, they’re supposed to work on eradicating plaque and calcium build-up in the arteries, respectively—they sound interesting, need to do more reading though. I take Vit K and cod liver oil. Not a lot else. I’ll, of course, continue reading…always. I really need to just make peace with not taking statins, eat/live well, and just let the cards fall where they may. No one lives forever (nor do I want to), but I do want to “figure” this out, make a decision, make peace with it, then let it go and get on with life. When I get into studying this stuff, it tends to consume my attention and actually take away from the enjoyment of living.

You might consider haviing a full cellular level nutrient panel conducted to see if you are deficient in those things your body needs to not get diabetes, cardiovascular disease and heart disease. I learned a littl late the side effects of statins. I was healthy until my family doctor prescribed a statin for me. I should not have listened to him. Good luck!

Help! I’m a 53 year old man in pretty good health, just a bit overweight, non smoker or drinker. Discovered 2 years ago my calcium score was 1180! Blew me away. Last year discovered 80% blockage in right coronary artery requiring a stent. Just passed my stress echo with flying colors. Do I stay on the Crestor prescribed 2 years ago? Thanks!

Normally I would start with the disclaimer that I am not a doctor, but honestly most doctors don’t bother to inform themselves about statins and won’t give you an informed opinion….

My opinion, after researching this for my father, is that Statins are probably one of the most dangerous things you can be taking, and provide no benefit that you can’t get by taking over the counter anti-inflammatories.

Take a look at my above post for an explanation of what they actually do…

I was always against stain-use from the widespread information that gets purported by ‘alternative medicine’ in terms of the issues with myopathy and rhabdomyolysis, and memory problems.

I have just written a report on long-term statin use for a class my cardio class at University and the issue I take with your article is that you look at a few very, very large meta-analyses and then use that to form judgements.

Statins have a strong correlation with reduced heart disease (30-35% reduction in LDL-C and 20-25% reduction in mortality from CHD) and these values have been established across wide number of studies. The problem most people make is they say the cholesterol has very little to do with it (they would be right) but the pleiotropic effects of statins is huge. Reduced inflammation, up-regulated nitric oxide, huge antioxidant benefit and stability of the endothelium is massive. They are marketed as cholesterol lowering drugs (which they do) but the main benefits seem to come from the above beneficial effects.. And so when you tell people to stop taking statins cause they cause muscle degradation or they cause this or that.. Or that cholesterol has nothing to do with it.. It could do a lot of harm (people have heart attacks when stopping statins use due to immediate drop in nitric oxide and spiked blood pressure)..

Take home message – cholesterol has very little to do with CHD other than being a mediator in the process – statins have a wide-spread affect other than just cholesterol. First, you should fix your lifestyle (i.e. start exercising, start taking CoQ10, omega 3s, eating less refined CHOs) and then reduce statin use. The ill-harm that comes from reduced CoQ10 levels can be mediated via a supplement and most people’s muscle pain goes away when they use that supplement.

Also, when you say there is no reduced mortality in people taking the statins vs. placebo, you have to remember that people will die of something, eventually. So sure, they die of cancer, but their quality of life may have been hugely increased by not having CHD.

The way you talk, you are still thinking of statins as a cholesterol lowering drug. Since that it was they are prescribed for it would make sense to assume that when you ask “What do statins do?” the answer would be “lower cholesterol.”, but that is not the case.

There have been several drugs that actually did lower cholesterol(cholestenone, Triparanol, etc) but in each case they never made it to clinical trials or were pulled shortly after they did because they are extremely dangerous. In the case of Triparanol, for example, it increased the blood levels of desmosterol(one of the precursors for cholesterol) which had similar effects to cholesterol, so it didn’t provide any net gain. These drugs also caused lens cataracts and hair loss. Rats tested at high dosage actually went blind.

So if statins don’t inhibit cholesterol, what do they do? Well, they went all the way back to the basic building blocks and blocked it there, by inhibiting the entire mevalonate pathway. Statins interfere with the pathway right near the top, by blocking the Hydroxymethylglutharyl-CoA(HMG-CoA). This is equivalent to trying to reduce the emissions on your car by welding the intake for your gas tank closed.

Among the end-points that are blocked are the Dolichols, Ubiquinones, Squalene, Heme A, Sterols, and Prenylated proteins.

So what does that matter? Well, lets take dolichols… While they have many effects, for our purpose here let us examine their function in the brain. As our brains develop the levels of dolichol increase and the substantia nigra gets darker(caused by neuromelanin, of which the major portion is made of dolichols). In Alzheimer patients, they have found that there are decreased levels of dolichols, and several drug companies are testing various drugs(i.e. Ropren) to deal with neurodegenerative diseases by addressing dolichol deficiency. Statins cause artificial dolichol deficiency. Gee, I wonder what that would do…

What about squalene? Well, it is the biochemical precursor to all steroids. It is also vital for vitamin D synthesis… But I guess that none of those are really important, right?

How many of their patients do you think doctors are warning about those side effects? How many patients are being prescribed statins when they are in groups that show no benefit to it AT ALL(i.e. women)? Not only that, but there is an abnormally depressed reporting of adverse effects, and it has actually been fairly well documented that doctors are resistant to attributing these adverse effects to the statins and reporting them as such.

Take home message: Statins are really really bad news, and you shouldn’t START taking them in the first place. Granted if you have been on a significant dose for some time you should wean yourself off rather than going cold turkey, but you should still get off them

Do you believe a daily low dose aspirin (81 mg) is just as effective as a higher dose at treating heart disease, but with–perhaps–a smaller risk of internal bleeding? My doctor says I would “benefit” from a statin, but I have refused thus far to take one, and am considering aspirin as a part of an approach to reduce the risk of CVD. My Apo-B is 143 with pattern B LDL and high blood sugars and high blood pressure. I definitely have to do something to reduce my risk of CVD.

Paul if you’re doctor is hounding you about a statin, ask him to compromise with Red Yeast Rice which is much more gentle on the body because it has low dose lovastatin naturally occurring, and just make sure to tell him its a standardized product. If you want the best advice about how to Lower your cholesterol naturally, besides the obv. Of taking Krill, Garlic, eating an organic apple once a day. You should make your family doctor/primary care physician a Naturopathic Medical
, which treats you by making your diet
fit your body, natural supplements, homeopathy, chiropractic adjustments, Ayurvedic medicine, Chinese medicine, and if you need medication they can do that too. Its a high valueable, and under utilized

Hi Chris
I understand you are not taking any new patients, but would like to know if you can recommend someone who has a nonstatin approach to lipids. Please don’t tell me to go to the paleo doc site because most of the people on there are chiropracters (not that I have anything against them, but I probably need an MD). I have extremely high cholesterol (61 y.o. thin female) and up until recently have been on 10 mg of lipitor, but stopped it because my blood sugars have been labile and I think I’m one of those who have developed diabetes from statins. I fit the typical profile.
Right now I am trying to control my blood sugar by low carbing (we raise our own grass fed animals/milk/eggs etc), but still not sure what to do about the high cholesterol. Thanks

In the end, we can’t trust most doctors as they recommend what drug companies tell them and not what science tell them. I eat well (most of the time mostly vegetables and very little meat and little sugar) and I have a very good HDL level but a little high LDL level.

I am 47. A doctor specialized in lipid clinic told me right away that I had to take statins even if I do not have any heart problem.

I really am frustrated regarding this doctor urge to prescribe drugs to enrich companies instead of trying to find other ways. Are doctors really independent???

Last May (2011) my NEW doctor started me on a statin drug after cholesterol came back at 262. HDL (60’s)and Triglycerides (80’s). LDL 170’s. I asked nurse about side effects and was told not to worry about it. I said what the heck and started taking them. 6 weeks later cholesterol numbers fine. continued on statin. couple months later found my hips hurting so bad couldnt sleep. Then found i couldnt run without massive joint and muscle pain. I decided to do research of side effects and found the statin drugs to be the cause. Stopped them and was fine within a short time. My doctor said I HAD to take them. I asked about diet and exercise and she said a man my age (54) couldnt control my cholesterol without drugs.
Well I refused to take the statins again and started educating myself. Through my reading I discovered the importance of Omega 3 (EPA DHA) in our diet and how Omega 6 causes inflammation. Taking 2+ grams a day of Omega 3 (EPA DHA), also take Niacin, 1 gram a day.. 4 months later, without Statins, my total cholesterol is 217, HDL is 67, Triglycerides 71 and LDL 136. Combined with this started eating way better, avoiding the simple carbs, vegetable oil etc etc etc. I have lost 10 lbs without trying ( I am 6′ tall and did weigh about 194)
The biggest thing is I FEEL GREAT!!!!!!
I tell people to read your articles all the time, changed my life. Thank you!!!

Dave – your numbers are impressive. I went off of my statin a year ago; my doc is wanting me back on them (chol ~300). I started eating in the Paleo way, but with dairy. I’m curious, two years later now, how are you doing? How are your numbers? Have you made any changes to your supplements?

My doctor has been bugging me for the past 2 years about going on statins. The main concern is my ldl and crp readings(which he admits are not always accurate). I’ve had these readings for many years, no matter what weight I am at or exercise level.
Took pravastatin 2 years ago for a feww months and stopped after memory issues and muscle pain.
I’d really appreciate input.

My doctor has been bugging me for the past 2 years about going on statins. The main concern is my ldl and crp readings(which he admits are not always accurate). I’ve had these readings for many years, no matter what weight I am at or exercise level.
Took pravastatin 2 years ago for a feww months and stopped after memory issues and muscle pain.
I’d really appreciate input.

Thanks for the heads-up on that book, abolderwoman. Actually I just received an email a couple of days ago from a woman who suffered from muscle damage as a result of taking statins. She was wondering what she can do to address the persistent weakness she’s experiencing – even though she is no longer taking the drugs. I’ll forward this to her.

Thanks for this post and comments regarding CoQ10, which most physicians seem to ignore. There’s a very good book related to this discussion — “Drug-Induced Nutrient Depletion Handbook.” It’s not as up-to-date as some of us would like, but it’s still helpful for anyone wondering about how specific drugs can affect our health. (fyi, I have no connection to this book or its authors — just find it useful and thought others might, too.)

Aspirin is NOT in any way a vitamin K antagonist. Aspirin is not an anticoagulant like warfarin. Aspirin is an antiplatelet drug. It is an irreversible inhibitor of cyclooxygenase, which is an ezyme involved in the production of prostaglandins and, important for this topic, thromboxane.

Thromboxane causes platelets to clump together. This clumping together to repair damage blood vessels is often what leads to heart attacks and strokes. Therefore, Aspirin works to reduce the incidence of stroke and heart attack by blocking the ability of platelets to clump together.

That’s not to say that low-dose Aspirin does not have it’s own potential adverse effects. Even low doses of Aspirin can greatly increase one’s risk for gastrointestinal ulcers. However, everything the aforementioned comment mentioned about it’s effect on Vitamin K is completely false.

Aspirin is a vitamin K antagonist. This means that the low dose aspirin that is so often recommended is preventing vitamin K from ensuring strong, flexible arteries with little to no calcium deposition – which is probably what REALLY causes CVD. Not to mention that aspirin ups the risk of bleeding out.
Aspirin on a daily basis is ill-conceived and is based on the paradigm of CVD occurring as a result platelets sticking together and then hanging up on build-up in arteries. Instead, it appears that calcium build-up is the first action of problems which occurs throughout life from early on – due to insufficient K2 and insufficiency of other calcium metabolism co-factors – and then the build up causes cholesterol to try to repair this problem and then docs think they need to “thin” blood and reduce cholesterol carrier proteins (LDL and VLDL) and they block the vitamin K action of making calcium go to the teeth and bones by hampering the carrier protein of vitamin K (yep, LDL and VLDL are the carrier proteins of vitamin K and beta carotene, among other beneficial proteins) via statins and aspirin. Hence, we have the wrong paradigm, the wrong treatments, and we need less aberrant forms of calcium, more calcium metabolism co-factors and fewer docs prescribing.

Yes, that’s exactly right. Statins powerfully inhibit CoQ10 production and that is very likely one reason are not effective for more than 95% of the population and actually increase total mortality in many cases – in spite of their anti-inflammatory effect.

This is one of the many “untold stories” of statin drugs. Thanks for bringing it to our attention!

Can you link me to some of the studies/data showing that they increase total mortality?

I am currently having a discussion with my father, who’s doctor told him that statins decrease total mortality, and he has gone back on them. I can’t find any reputable studies either way… (and sorry for resurrecting a post this old, but…)

They decrease total mortality in men with pre-existing heart disease, but not in women, men or women over 65, or men without pre-existing heart disease. The mortality reduction in men with pre-existing heart disease is small, and in my opinion is better achieved using other means.

Hi Mark
I read your comments on statin drugs a lot of the symtons I have lethargy muscle weakness etc
I spoke to my doctor regarding this and said it is a very small minority of people that have side affects and it was media hype. I would like to know if I can just go off them because my memory is clouded and I am sick of it. I would rather take aspirin.
Is there a safe way to take aspirin without damaging the lining of the stomach.
I am 57 years old
Kind regards
Julia Pogson

We should also keep in mind that statins interfere with co-enzyme Q10 production. CoQ10 is extremely important for mitochondrial energy production and is especially important for heart function. It is also a powerful antioxidant which may prevent arteriosclerosis by preventing the accumulation of oxidized fats. It has been shown in clinical studies to modulate high blood pressure, regulate heart rhythm, and increase exercise tolerance in cases of angina and congestive heart failure.